


Bang Bang

by GoldenStardust



Category: Voltron - Fandom, Voltron: Legendary Defender, klance - Fandom
Genre: Allura & Lance (Voltron) are Siblings, Aromantic Asexual Pidge | Katie Holt, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Crossdressing Lance (Voltron), Dancer Lance (Voltron), Drummer Pidge (Voltron), Gay Keith (Voltron), Gay Matt Holt (Voltron), Gay Shiro (Voltron), Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Guitarist Keith (Voltron), Guitarist Shiro (Voltron), Keith & Shiro (Voltron) are Half-Siblings, Kinda, Land and Nyma are ex's, M/M, Manager Allura (Voltron), Minor Matt Holt/Shiro, Multi, Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pining Keith (Voltron), Rapper Pidge (Voltron), Singer Keith (Voltron), Song fic, Strong Language, Tags Contain Mild Spoilers, Text Scenes, also kinda - Freeform, band au, cursing, flirty lance (voltron), im not actually sure what I'm doing, klance, text fic, they aren't dating anymore
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-10
Updated: 2019-03-07
Packaged: 2019-07-28 23:03:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16251593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldenStardust/pseuds/GoldenStardust
Summary: The one where Keith is the founder of a band, and when Allura books them for something they're not entirely prepared to deal with, a certain Cuban brother has to step up and teach them a thing or two, and may or may not have captured the lead singer's heart.





	1. Trains and Coffee

**Author's Note:**

> Also known as "I had a few ideas and saw a few things and now this is what you get". I have an actual layout and little document with all of the information I need to make a somewhat consistent upload schedule. That being said, I'm trying to update every Friday!! (Not including this one, of course.) 
> 
> I really hope that this fic turns out pretty good, I have high hopes for it, but who knows how well this'll actually turn out. Sorry this chapter is pretty short, I intend to make them longer as this fic goes on. 
> 
> If you don't know the song "Bang Bang", here's a YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HDdjwpPM3Y
> 
> Please enjoy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Coffee, introductions and background. This is more or less just a setup chapter, so you have an idea of what’s going on before being thrown into the story.

Keith was almost revolted at the throbbing beat pounding out of the headphone speakers. _What had Allura just assigned to him?_

Standing in a Metro train car, speeding down the rails, the eighteen-year-old boy couldn’t imagine that his unofficial boss had booked his band for this song. Keith was the proud founder of " _The Paladins",_  a group that was famous for being able to mimic other artist’s songs. Not only were they a surprisingly talented cover band, but they were extra impressive because of their infamous special effects. Between their visual, audio and physical effects and the continually moving set pieces on their nearly completely robotic stage, they took pride in their abilities to wow a crowd with the visuals alone. And, on top of everything, they worked with a minuscule team.

That is, they _used_ to have a minuscule team. Before Shiro had managed to set them up with a big-scale company, there were five permanent members of The Paladins.

There was him, of course, the founder, the main vocals and guitar player of the band. Shiro, his older half-brother, bass player, and the one who helped them not lose their sanity, along with all of their energy. Pidge, who was the drummer and rapper of the group (Keith wasn’t nearly as good with keeping up with all of the words so quickly), and the occasional vocals if they deemed necessary. Matt, Pidge’s big brother, and Shiro’s boyfriend, who was in charge of the effects during performances and generally tech stuff other times. And finally, there was Sam, father of the Holt siblings and overall manager of the band, and maybe also a tech wizard on the side.

The five of them, accompanied by the occasional electrician or architect to help make sure nobody was going to die while performing due to faulty equipment, were able to put on amazing performances and be able to live the dream of their ideal careers.

Of course, putting in 200% of their energy to building, testing, installing and practice everything for every performance was unbelievably draining. If they ever were given a moment off of work, then they were either sleeping or eating and nothing else. Keith, in particular, wasn’t able to exercise nearly as much or give much attention at all to his cat, Red.

They had all been recovering from a 48-hour work session when Shiro had brought up the idea of working for a bigger company. Nobody was all too eager to give up their freedoms as a band, but the bags under their eyes and trashcans full of coffee grounds and empty energy drink bottles left room for no arguments.

As it turned out, working for a big company had been a genius move on Shiro’s part. While it did expectedly take away some of their freedoms, it gave them so much more than completely outweighed the bad. Not only did they have more time to sleep and spend time for themselves, but they also need up with much more resources than before. Backup dancers or extras were provided for performances, people were there to do paperwork and send emails for them, and best yet, now Pidge, Matt and Sam didn’t have to construct everything on their own. The day they had shifted into the company’s domain, a large man named Hunk had introduced himself as an engineer and set construction worker, and he was now almost apart of the band himself. The Holts were able to click with Hunk immediately, and it certainly helped that he had brought a box of _“Welcoming Pastries,”_ he had put it, that he made himself.

Keith was still amazed that Shiro had been able to hook them up with such amazing people to work with, but _thank god for college_. The owner of the company “Altean Entertainment” was run by Mr. Altean himself, and Shiro just happened to be college roommates and good friends with his daughter, Allura Altea. Allura was the oldest of the Altea children, so she was next in line to take over the company, and was more or less using The Paladins as a test run to see how managing worked. Her uncle, Coran, was her advisor, and the one who made sure she didn’t really screw anything up. However, as it turned out, Allura was an excellent manager and took care in her work, so he was really there at this point because the law demanded it.

But, for as good of a manager Allura was, Keith wasn’t sure what she was thinking when she booked his team for this performance. It was for a bachelorette party, where they were to perform what appeared to be a full-on concert of different artists for a presumably humungous crowd for the type of party. There were songs that they typically did, rock or alternate themed, mostly, one song Pidge would be doing, and that was about it. It was nothing too complicated, be it a few more songs than they usually played in one session, but certainly doable. It was at the very end of the playlist, however, that worried Keith the most. After an entire playlist of songs he was accustomed to, the final song was one titled “Bang Bang.”

Keith almost fell down when he first heard the song, despite the fact that the train was sitting at a complete stop. What was blasting into his ears was an upbeat pop song he used to hear play on popular radio stations, sang by _Arianna Grande, Jessie J, and Nicki Minaj_.

His band had _never_ done any song like this before, even advertising that they weren’t a pop band and that it was one of the worst song genres somebody could pick for them. They had even gone as far as turning down the people who ignored the advertisment and still asked for pop songs, and this was the worst one he’d heard yet. So why,  _why_ did Allura ever agree to this?

Keith stepped out of the train car and into the busy train station, taking a long way around to avoid the overpopulated underground that is public transportation centers. A short, ten-minute walk later, and he was strolling into Altean Entertainment’s building, taking the only way he knew to The Paladin’s assigned workspace.

The building was a nice place to begin with; always clean, fully stocked with anything needed, everything in proper repair, but the work areas were really something else. Not only was Altean Entertainment interested in satisfaction of the customers, but they made sure their employees and business partners were well taken care of just as much. His workspace was really something of a dance studio, which helped with choreography, with a recording studio-like room in the corner to hear how vocals were doing, and to record audio effects in advance.

Keith was able to see the blobs and colors of Pidge and Shiro through the blurred glass doors to their area as he approached, letting out a sigh of contempt. Matt and Sam were most likely in the tech department already, seeing as Pidge always carpooled with them, so that left Keith as the last person there again. He would no doubt be getting a talking-to later from Shiro about showing up on time, but it was really only a few minutes, _okay_? And besides, he had gotten them all coffee, so they would just have to suck it up.

Gripping the cool metal handle, Keith pushed open the door with a smile, pulling his headphones down around his neck. “Pidge. Shiro. Good morning.”

Shiro’s eyes were drawn up to the boy’s with an equally gentle smile, while Pidge’s stayed glued to their computer screen. “Good morning, Keith. A little tardy again today, huh?”

Keith rolled his eyes, putting down the stacked cup trays on an old, wooden table. “Gee. that’s a funny way of saying, _‘Thank you for the coffee, Keith! You’re the best brother I could ever wish for!’_ Why, if I didn't know any better, I would almost think that you weren't grateful for my services,” He mocked.

  
Shiro snorted and shook his head, while the mention of coffee was enough to capture Pidge’s interest.

“Coffee?” They echoed back, to which Keith held out a Starbucks cup in response. “One large, iced Venti Double-Shot,” he stated, the cup quickly snatched up by the gremlin.

“Do you have any idea how much caffeine is packed into that thing?” Shiro asked. He scolded Pidge every single time they ordered it, repeating the same thing over and over. “I hope you realize that it not only is packed with sugar because of the extra garbage you insist on dumping into it, but it also has _five whole—_ “

“Yeah yeah yeah, of course,” they cut Shiro off completely. “Five whole shots of espresso. I _know_. And it’s _delicious_ ,” they objected. “So just take your own peasant coffee and leave me in peace, _please_.”

Keith’s smile grew ever so slightly, handing Shiro his cup of caffeine and settled into a chair with his own. Only half-listening to the other two arguing over the better coffee, Keith’s mind wandered back to his train ride.

His smile was dropped as he took out the pad he had written notes on for their newest project. Running through his thoughts once again, he got to the dreaded finale song. Looking back up at his bandmates, he interrupted the coffee debate with his own question.

  
“So, what did you guys think of the playlist Allura sent us?”

Pidge and Shiro looked back up at the mulleted boy with a huff of frustration, sending daggers to each other every so often. “What do you mean?” Pidge asked.

“I mean, did you hear the last song?” He asked again. Pidge exchanged looks with Keith, and then Shiro, and back to Keith again. They all knew what he meant, what he was getting at with his questions. They all knew that the song he was talking about was way out of their wheelhouse, and none of them really knew what to think. _Surely_ it was some sort of mistake, right? Allura would have to be out of her right mind to actually sign them up for this.

“I know Allura said something about her little brother coming in to help out with the choreography, since she knows we're not used to this kind of song,” Shiro mentioned. Okay, so maybe it wasn’t a mistake.

“Allura has a brother?” Keith asked. Shiro sighed, and Pidge just raised an eyebrow.

“Keith, she’s mentioned him before. Like, on multiple occasions.”

Keith’s eyebrows furrowed. “Well, maybe I wasn’t paying attention! I have a lot of work to do, so maybe I don’t have enough brainpower to also be listening to Allura all the time,” he defended.

“It’s alright, Keith. We all work very hard,” Shiro calmed. “She never actually gave us his name, but he teaches a kids dance class here and is a competitive dancer himself. He’s supposed to be—“ Shiro was cut off from a buzzing phone in his pocket, which he checked quickly.

He pulled himself up from his chair and adjusted himself accordingly. “Speaking of which,” he started, “Allura wants to meet us in her office for a few minutes. I’m sure you can ask your questions there,” he assured. Keith helped himself up, pulling Pidge up with him and swiped the coffee cup tray before leaving the studio.

“Honestly, she better have a _damn good_ explanation for signing us up for this shit.” 


	2. Rambling Sunshine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Allura has some explaining to do to these distressed band members, and who knew sunshine could ramble so much?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh this chapter is also so short I'm really sorry.

The walk to Allura’s office was short, but silent. Only the distant opening of opening doors from the entrance and gentle padding of footsteps echoed through the hall that led to her room. The door squeaked open as they entered, alerting their unofficial boss to their presence. Allura turned to the three of them with a bright smile, gesturing to a small sitting area. “Good morning, everyone! Sit down with me?” All four of them continued to the low, comfortable blue chairs around a tattered old coffee table. “Coran will be here shortly, he’s just finding Matthew and Sam for us.”�

Keith set the coffee cup tray down, sliding a Starbucks cup over to the woman who took it with a smile and an appreciative nod.

“What did you need, Allura?” Shiro asked, setting his own cup onto the table. Allura sent a smile over to him, crossing her legs on the chair. “Well, I’m sure you’ve all already seen and listened to the playlist that I sent you,” she started. “And I know there may have been a few songs there that you may have not been pleased with.” “Yeah, about that, Allura,” Keith intervened. “The last song that you assigned. The pop song? Allura, you _know_ we can’t do pop songs! We don’t have the right instruments, or– or the right effects, or really even know to make that kind of music, and not to even _mention_ the problem with choreography—“

“Which is why I wanted to speak with you!” She cut in again. “I just want to clear up a few things before we start work on it.” Keith settled back down with a huff, sinking into his chair a little further down then was probably necessary. “Don’t worry about any of the instruments, all of that is being taken care of with some extra help from some other employees. That should also cover the problem of unknown sounds, but I also know that with some extra practice and training, that you’ll be able to mimic the vocals. You have a good range already, so it shouldn’t be too hard to make that switch.” Keith did have to admit, Allura seemed to be on top of everything. “And, for the issue of choreography, I have some exciting news!” Allura chirped, clapping her hands together.

“Exciting news?”

All heads snapped back to see Matt, Sam with Coran at the door, looking vaguely similar to what Keith imagined death looked like. If their and Pidge’s coffee orders and general appearance were anything to go by, he would have to imagine that the Holt household was not too big on the idea of _“sleep.”_

“Boys! Please, join us, I was just talking about your newest assignment.” Matt and Sam followed their orders, sitting down as Keith passed out the last of the cups, settling the now empty cardboard tray next to him. “As I was saying, I do have some exciting news! I am aware that maybe this is a new style of music for all of us, so for a little bit of help, I’ve recruited my brother to help!” She sang. “Because this is a top priority right now, he will be putting his child classes on hold for a little bit. We need to make sure that this is an impressive performance.”

“With all due respect, Allura—“ Matt took a swig from his cup, “—why is this so important? We’ve done plenty of performances before, but this seems to be extra serious.”

Allura smiled back at Matt, folding her hand over her lap. “Well, the client this performance is for is the daughter of a very wealthy and influential man. She, in return, is also quite influential. If the large sum of money they offered as payment for the unusual song requests wasn’t enough to merit for a good show, the idea that she will enjoy it is even more crucial. If we are able to impress this girl, Luxia, then it could do wonders for you and Altean’s reputations, especially considering the sheer number of people that would actually be at the live performance. In the end, it could mean a large spike in our business and payout.” The smile on her face shifted into something more serious, “On the contrast, however, if this turns out as a flop, it could mean a _significant_ decrease in sales. You all are essentially the face of the company for this presentation, and how you do preform could put a major dent in our picture .”

“So, uh, _no pressure or anything_ ,” Pidge mumbled.

“That seems like a lot of weight on us..” Shiro thought aloud, drops of horror lacing his features.

“I suppose it _is_ a bit of a chore,” she complied, “but I know you all can do it! You’ve made us very proud so far, and I am sure that you’ll make us proud once again. And, besides, Lance is very dedicated to his craft, he wouldn’t let you go into anything unprepared. He’s not the kid's favorite instructor for nothing.” Keith’s eyes glanced to the right, landing on Pidge. ‘ _Lance_?’ He mouthed. ‘ _Brother_ ,’ they signaled back. He nodded, turning his attention back to the talking girl. “So I wouldn’t worry about that at all. If that problem ever does happen to arrive, we can deal with it when we must.”

“When do we get to meet Lance?” Shiro asked.

“Unfortunately, Lance will not be able to meet with us today. He has his own performance in a competition around the time that you have your performance, and he has to practice for that alongside practicing with you. All that means is that there will be a few days every week that you’ll be practicing the music instead of working with him. Otherwise, Lance will be working with all of you.” She sent her gaze toward Keith, “He will, however, be spending quite a bit of time with Keith, one-on-one. Seeing as you are the lead singer and center stage, it is important that you, of all people, know what you’re doing. That, and the fact the Lance will be dancing with you, so it is only natural that—“

“Wait,” Keith barked. “ _He’ll be dancing with me?_ When did we agree on this?”

“Besides the fact that our client requested Lance to be in the performance explicitly, it will help ensure that you don’t forget anything, and he can be there to remind you of anything if needed." Allura shifted in her seat, crossing her legs. "Anyways, I know you all have plenty of work cut out for you, so I won't keep you any longer." She stood up, holding her cup carefully as she moved back to her regular desk. Everyone followed her example, standing up and leaving the office with a short 'thank you' and goodbye.

"They requested Lance specifically? How do _they_ know about him if _we_ don't even know who he is?" Keith wondered aloud. 

"Allura did say that he was a performer, maybe they've seen him in performances," Pidge mumbled haphazardly, kicking their heels out as they wandered down the hallway.

"We should go see him in a show sometime! It'd be nice to see him in action and a good bonding experience," Sam chimed in, catching up with the trio with Matt in tow.

"He's a _kids instructor_! How amazing can he be?"

"Cool it, Keith," Shiro said, placing a hand on his head. "Don't make any assumptions about him before we even meet."

Three hours later, all five bandmates were sitting in the studio rehearsing when Hunk arrived. He set down his bags of groceries on a side table (they had claimed him as their personal chef when he had mentioned his love for cooking). He handed one bag over to Pidge, who immediately tore the plastic open and scavenged for any food within, ripping past the cardboard of a Poptart box. Matt and Sam had already flocked the larger boy, asking about recent projects and progress on the upgrades to the stage.

"Everything is running smoothly!" Hunk smiled, "What have you all been up to? Some people were saying that Allura assigned you something new."

"Allura has definitely crossed a boundary with this one," Keith grumbled, plucking at the strings of his red electric guitar.

"I'm sure it can't be that bad," Hunk offered a sympathetic smile. "What happened?"

"Hear for yourself," Pidge cut in, standing on their toes to slide headphones over the boy's ears. They fiddled with the buttons on their phone for a moment before the sound surged up the wire and into his ears. A surprised look masked his face instantly, twisting even further once the actual song picked up.

After a short two minutes, Hunk slipped the headphones off and handing them back to the smaller person. "So maybe it isn't exactly what you're used to," he started. "But I know you guys can do it! You guys are great musicians, and this is nothing compared to what you could do."

"Jesus, you sound like _Allura_ when you talk like that," Keith sighed. "And it's not that we can't do it, it's just that it's  _horrible_! Who even listens to that shit anyway?"

Hunk chuckled, shaking his head. "I know a guy, actually. My best friend loves to listen to this kinda pop music."

Keith rolled his eyes, setting his instrument down. "Tell your friend that he is a disgrace of a human being."

Hunk boomed out a laugh, sending a smile toward Keith. "I'll be sure to mention it." He began to file through the bags that he had brought, pulling out various boxes of snack food that he always supplied the group from his shopping trips. Pidge was already devouring their pop tarts, so he passed out the rest of the boxes of food between the others while he spoke. "Anyways, what's got you guys all worked up about the performance? Maybe it's a little different, but it's not that bad."

Keith scowled. "We have this guy coming in to help with the choreography since none of us know what to do with this garbage."

" _Somebody_ isn't looking forward to taking directions from somebody he doesn't know," Shiro said, sending a teasing smile to Keith. He received only a deeper glare back.

"No, I understand," Hunk wrapped an arm around Keith sympathetically, making him squirm away from the touch. "Have you met this new bossy man yet?"

"Nope. Allura said he was coming in tomorrow," Pidge said, slowing down their pop tart consumption to work on their own contraption. "Something about having a dance class or something."

"That's cool! I'm excited to meet him," Hunk beamed. "I actually have a friend who instructs dance classes here, maybe they know each other?"

"Maybe. He's supposed to be a kids instructor, so they probably wouldn't be working in the same departments," Shiro chimed in, looking up from his guitar.

"Oh, actually, he also works in the kid's department some! Though he does a lot of his own performances. Has one coming up soon, too!"

Pidge and Keith exchanged glances, looking back at Hunk.

"Kid's department? Performances?" Pidge echoed back. "He wouldn't, by chance, be Allura's brother or anything, right?"

"Actually, he is rela–"

" _Lance_?"

The older boy looked confused for a moment, processing what they had said before the bright smile returned back onto his face. "Yeah, Lance! You guys must know him! He's a super talented performer, you've probably seen one of his shows or something, right? Oh! Maybe I can take you to one of his shows soon, and you can actually meet him! You guys should totally meet, I'm sure you'd all be best friends, he's such a great guy–"

"Hunk!" Keith snapped, halting Hunk's rambling at a sudden stop. "We know. Lance is working with us for choreography purposes."

"Really?" Hunk cheered, his smile bursting even brighter. "Isn't he great? We've known each other since second grade, you know, so we've been best friends for forever, practically. I know everything about him and he knows everything about me, so I can tell you everything you need to know about him, if you'd like. Gosh, this is so great, all of my friends are becoming friends! I can't wait to hang out with everyone at once, "

"Actually, we haven't met him yet," Pidge said. "As I said, he's coming tomorrow. You can introduce him if you want."

He nodded, clasping his hands together gleefully. "I'm sure you guys will _love him_! He's super fun and a really great guy, I bet you'll be super great friends."

And Hunk had no idea how incredibly right and incredibly wrong he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact, this fic was partially inspired by this: https://youtu.be/H7YRRaOgpUk
> 
> Kudos, comments, and anything else is always appreciated!  
> Updates every Friday.


	3. If There's a God Out There

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith finally gets to meet this mystery boy Lance, and boy oh boy, does Pidge know how to fuck with this poor boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodness, I am so sorry about how long it's been since I last updated. I cannot apologize enough, honestly. I've been in a play! I won't go into details, but that, along with normal schoolwork made for very little time to do much of anything else. I cannot promise this sort of thing won't happen again, but I certainly do not plan to miss updates. That being said, I'm going to be updating consistently (or attempting to, at least) for as long as possible now.
> 
> Other update! I am planning on having an art piece from an incredible Tumblr artist in one of my later chapters, so I will mention that when it comes into play. 
> 
> Once again, my apologies, now I'm back on schedule and ready to start working once again!

**1 New Message** from **redlioness** to **sunshineboy**

Wednesday 7:17 AM

  
**redlioness** : whats Lances coffee order?  
(Sent at 7:17 AM)

  
Keith sighed down at his phone, staring at the recently sent message. Today was the day to start this disaster, and if he was supposed to be dancing with this new Lance person, then he should probably at least try to make a good impression. Keith blames his good nature on Shiro, who had spent the entirety of his childhood burning good manners into his brain.

The buzz in his jean pocket joined him as he stepped into a Starbucks cafe.

 

 **sunshineboy** : He likes an iced white chocolate mocha.  
(Delivered at 7:22 AM)

 **sunshineboy** : Why?  
(Delivered at 7:22 AM)

 **sunshineboy** : You trying to butter him up for something?  
 **(Delivered** at 7:22 AM)

 

Keith could feel his cheeks burn as his eyes skimmed the messages. He was _not_ trying to butter Lance up, thank you, he just didn't want him to be upset that everyone else would get coffee, and he wouldn't.

 

 **redlioness** : no  
(Sent at 7:23 AM)

 **redlioness** : i just don't want him to hate me  
(Sent at 7:23 AM)

 

It wasn't a lie, he really didn't want Lance to hate him. It would make the next month very difficult (even more so than it already would be, at least) if there were some sort of unnecessary hostility between them as they worked.

Keith gathered his coffees, now carrying Lance's extra cup, which proved to be a rather considerable annoyance on a rumbly train ride to Altean. He managed, though, and entered into his studio to find a sleeping Pidge curled up on a soft bench in the corner of the room. When Keith approached closer, he noticed a still open laptop on the floor, hooked up to a charger in the wall. Soft laughter fell from his mouth, and Keith set the coffees down on a table. He pulled his phone out and took a picture of the sleeping gremlin to send to Matt and Sam.

The boy was fully aware that if Pidge happened to wake right then, that he would most certainly be attacked, and would no doubt lose any trace of the pictures. But he liked his chances. Pidge barely woke up with an alarm blaring in their ears, he suspected that not much would happen because of a camera snap.

The photo went directly to his group chat with the Holts (without Pidge, of course), and after wiping any sort of evidence of the pictures from his phone, he scooped his small bandmate up into his arms. They had invested in a cot for the studio for a reason, and if Pidge was going to refuse to go home half the time, then they may as well make some use out of it. It was still early, and Keith didn't mind letting them sleep for a little bit longer. God knows they didn't get enough sleep regularly anyways. He went back over to their campsite, closing the laptop and pulling the charger from the outlet, wrapping it around itself. His pocket buzzed once again while he was cleaning, a message from Shiro.

 

 **5 New Messages** from **Actual_Adult** to **redlioness**

Wednesday 8:03 AM

 **Actual_Adult** : Good morning, Keith.  
(Delivered at 8:03 AM)

 **Actual_Adult** : I'm not going to be in today. I woke up to a temperature running high and a killer headache this morning, and I don't want any of you to catch anything that I've got.  
(Delivered at 8:03 AM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Especially with Lance coming in today and the performance soon.  
(Delivered at 8:03 AM)

 

He rolled his eyes at that. Shiro would come into work with one of his arms cut off if he could. Allura has had to force him to go home multiple times because Shiro was so tired or very clearly suffering from an illness, but he was just _too damn_ stubborn and refused to leave his job undone. Keith suspected Allura was to thank once again for Shiro not coming in today.

 

 **Actual_Adult** : Allura already knows, but I need you to tell the Holts and Hunk.  
(Delivered at 8:03 AM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Be sure to play nice with Lance, I don't want to come in later to find a fight going on between you two.  
(Delivered at 8:04 AM)

 **redlioness** : i'll fight him on your behalf then  
(Sent at 8:04 AM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Making me proud, as always.  
(Delivered at 8:04 AM)

 

Keith muffled a laugh, head swinging to the noise of Matt pushing open the glass door of the studio. He sent a smile over to the raven-haired boy, cooing softly when his eyes landed on his sleeping sibling. Keith picked up the coffee trays, handing the caffeine-packed, marked cup and gave it to the taller boy, taking a heavy swig from his own.augh

"I hope you realize how thin the ice that you're treading is," Matt smiled, "Pidge'll skin you alive if they catch you."

Keith shrugged. "With how little sleep your house actually gets? I'm not exactly shaking in my boots."

The mindless, quiet banter between the two boys only lasted so long until Hunk burst through the doors, carrying the bags and trays he always brought with him.

" _I found durian_!" he announced. "I can't believe it, nobody ever has durian fruit! Nobody has ever even _heard_ of durian fruit, and someone was _selling_ it at–"

"Hunk!" Matt shushed, holding a finger to his mouth and pointing to Pidge, now sitting up on the blanket-covered cot.

Hunk threw his hands over his mouth, a horribly guilty expression washing over his features. Before he was able to smother them with hugs and apologizes, Pidge spoke up.

"No, no, he's fine, I was already awake." Their words slurred together in a haze of sleepiness, rubbing at their eyes. "What's up?"

Part of the guilt melted off, but they could see it still laced in his eyes. "Oh, well, I've been going to farmers markets recently, right? And I went yesterday after work, because like everyone knows, if you can't go in the morning, you gotta go right before work is out. So I went to my favorite one yesterday near the Balmera Village place, right? And there was this _lovely_ woman named Shay who was very pretty, and she was selling durians! _Durians_! I've only had durians a few times, but they are delicious, let me tell you. But nobody, _nobody_ ever has any durian, and Shay had it! I bought three of them and made this really incredible cake from a recipe, and I wanted you guys to try it!"

Pidge had been off of the makeshift bed and by Hunk's side as soon as the prospect of food was mentioned. "Cake?" They echoed, and Keith could practically see their eyes glittering in anticipation.

Hunk smiled down at them and held up a cake tray. "Cake!"

  
**–– –– ––**

  
Once Pidge had fully woken up and was pumped full of caffeine, it was determined that they should probably actually start working. Hunk had left to fetch Lance, and with Shiro gone, it was just Keith and the Holts. Matt and Sam were working on their own on some techno-light thing for the stage, and Keith and Pidge were dealing with instruments.

"Do you think he'll actually be any help?" Keith mumbled, plucking at the strings of his guitar.

Pidge poked at the symbols of their drumset with their finger. "I'd have to think so. Allura usually has good judgment when it comes to this stuff. 'Specially since it's her brother and she knows him really well."

"Yeah, I guess," he returned. "I just hope he doesn't make it weird. What would we be doing, anyway?"

"Mmm, I don't know." Keith could hear the teasing tone begin to seep into their words. "You're probably gonna be team stripping on stage or something. I heard that's what those kids like nowadays. But like you said, nothing weird."

"Oh, yeah, that'll be really fun," Keith said dryly. "Maybe we'll get to straight up fuck on stage, if I'm lucky."

Pidge snickered, patting the older boy's head. " _Aw_ , baby, you're not nearly experienced enough for that. Lancy-Poo is a professional, remember? You're just following his lead. It takes _much_ more than a couple of weeks to learn that kind of thing."

"Not if _'Lancy-Poo'_ is a good enough teacher, I should be able to do anything by the time we're done." Keith was used to Pidge's nearly unbearable sarcasm and had been around them enough to almost match them at their game. "Unless, of course, he isn't all he's been cracked up to be, in which case I'd be very disappointed."

"Keith, sweetie, he's a  _professional_ , not a magician. But it's always nice to dream, right?"

"And here's the studio!"

Keith's response was swallowed by Hunk's booming voice, and a quieter, unfamiliar to follow. He couldn't quite hear what the voice had said, but any thoughts of figuring it out fled his mind as soon as he saw who walked through the doors. Trailing behind Hunk was someone none of them had seen before. He was tan, tall, and even from his spot across the room, Keith could make out a pair of beautiful blue eyes. He was that long sort of muscular, where it was only noticeable if someone was looking for it. Lucky for this mystery man, Keith couldn't pry his eyes off of him.

Growing up with Shiro, he was constantly reminded how to be a good person with good manners. "Please" and "Thank you" were common words in his vocabulary. Doors were held open, tables were set, chores were done without complaint. Once Shiro had realized that Keith was about the age where dating became something he would become interested in, he had a long talk with him. One of his main points was to never "judge a book by its cover," a very popular phrase during the lecture. It had been practically burned into his brain by the time he was fourteen, and it was still there today.

Having said that, Keith knew that ogling over this boy was not something he should be doing, but _goddamn._

He was _gorgeous_.

Now, Pidge had been friends with Keith for a long enough time to know when somebody had caught his eye. In turn, it meant that they knew, that, when he found somebody attractive, he would turn into a disastrous mess of a human and had a very hard time handling any sort of conversation. And, really, what kind of friend would they be to pass up this kind of golden opportunity?

_"What was that about 'Lancy-Poo'?"_

Keith was snapped out of his trance with a poke in the ribs and a snide comment from the gremlin beside him. He turned his vision toward said menace, resenting the smirk spreading over their lips. Before he could bark back at them, his eyes snapped back up to see that Hunk had brought the stunning boy to the two of them. Keith's face flooded a hot red, and he instinctively sunk down into his seat. Pidge, however, was not about to have any of that, and helped him to his feet, giving him an extra shove for good measure. Keith glared back at them but refused to speak, not wanting to provide them the satisfaction of seeing him attempt a conversation while this flustered. But once again, the world refused to let him save any dignity.

"Keith! Pidge! Here he is!" Hunk smiled, throwing an arm over the smaller boy.

Keith froze. His mind began to flash thoughts he probably should've been thinking about earlier, and panic began to bubble up into his head. This– this wasn't his dance partner, right? No, _no no no_ , this wasn't what's-his-name. Lance. This wasn't Lance. Couldn't be. He was _not_ about to be dancing with this boy for the next however many weeks. Hunk brought friends around here all the time, this tan boy was probably just visiting or something. It, it _couldn't_ have been him, right? Please, this wasn't him. Keith prayed, _if there was a god out there_ , just make this some handsome passerby, and please, _please_ _not–_

"Keith and Pidge, this is Lance, Lance, this is Keith and Pidge! Gosh, I'm so excited, all my best friends are here in one room! "

And just like that, Keith's world crashed and burned.

And Pidge knew it.

And they _loved_ it.

"Oh!" They chirped, sounding far happier than they actually were. They turned to Keith excitedly, an infuriatingly fake enthusiasm oozing from every feature. "Keith, did you hear that? This is Lance! Allura's brother! The one who's gonna be helping us! Remember?"

Keith kind of wanted to die, right then and there.

"He–"

Pidge pushed their hand over Keith's mouth, silencing the surely jumbled mess of a response that he was about to spit out. "I know! It's so exciting, isn't it?"

Keith grabbed their wrist and pried it off of his face, sending a death glare towards the smaller person. He threw his gaze back up at the two bigger boys timidly, the pink haze still lingering on his cheeks. "Um, Lance! It's, it's, uh–" he swallowed, "–it's nice to meet you." He internally cringed at how soft and shaken his voice was.

The taller boy laughed, a teasing grin now on his face. "You sure about that?"

God _damnit_ , now Lance was taunting him too? What the _fuck_ , Pidge, look at what you've done.

"I, uh–"

Pidge smiled, reaching up to squeeze his cheek. "Aw, poor baby. All flustered around the new boy."

"I..!" Keith slapped their hand away, his face burning even hotter than before, Lance's laughter echoing in his ears. "I am _not_ flustered!"

"Alright then, baby boo," Pidge smiled. They turned their attention back to the smiling new boy and an utterly confused Hunk and held out their hand. "Pidge. It is nice to meet you, despite what Keith here might say."

"I haven't said anything!" Keith snapped back.

Lance again chuckled, taking the smaller one's hand and shaking it. "Lance. But I guess you already know that?"

"Hunk has talked a lot about you," Pidge looked up at the boy in question, who gave a guilty smile to Lance. They elbowed a supsiciously silent Keith in the ribs, "Be polite and say hello, Keith."

Keith stumbled a little, mentally cursing Pidge out. He rubbed his side where they had nudged him, finally looking back up at the other two. He held out his own hand, "I'm Keith."

"So I've gathered," Lance bounced back, the same annoyingly beautiful smile plastered on his face. "Hunk's told me about you all as well, I guess it's time to see if all his claims hold up."

"Alright!" Pidge announced, clapping their hands together. They landed a hand on the small of Keith's back, pushing him towards Lance one last time. "You kids have some fun. And pull yourself together, baby." They gave him a pat on the back for good measure and spun on their heel to walk away. They pulled their phone out of a backpack, switching to the messages app.

 

 **6 New Message** from **lilgreengremlin** to **Actual_Adult**

Wednesday 2:53 PM

 

 **lilgreengremlin** : good news, better news, best news  
(Sent at 2:48 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : good news, lance is here  
(Sent at 2:48 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : better news  
(Sent at 2:48 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : your dumbass brother is having trouble controlling his gay  
(Sent at 2:48 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : best news  
(Sent at 2:49 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : im not helping in the slightest  
(Sent at 2:49 PM

 **Actual_Adult** : Pidge, please.  
(Delivered at 2:49 PM) 

 **Actual_Adult** : Not again.  
(Delivered at 2:49 PM)

 

 **lilgreengremlin** : too late  
(Sent at 2:49 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Please have mercy on my poor brother.  
(Delivered at 2:49 PM

 **lilgreengremlin** : mmm  
(Sent at 2:49 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : unlikely  
(Sent at 2:50 PM)


	4. [disaster_gay.jpg]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith isn't used to being held and Pidge is a devil child.

**6 New Messages** from **redlioness** to **Actual_Adult**

 Wednesday 3:01 PM

 **redlioness** : Shiro  
(Sent at 3:01 PM)

 **redlioness** : jesus fuck Shiro  
(Sent at 3:01 PM)

 **redlioness** : i cant do it  
(Sent at 3:01 PM)

 **redlioness** : i just cant  
(Sent at 3:01 PM)

 **redlioness** : i dont know what you want from me  
(Sent at 3:01 PM)

 **redlioness** : but i cant  
(Sent at 3:02 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Lance?  
(Delivered at 3:02 PM)

 **redlioness** : YES LANCE  
(Sent at 3:02 PM)

 **redlioness** : WHAT ELSE WOULD I BE TALKING ABOUT  
(Sent at 3:02 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Calm down, Keith.  
(Delivered at 3:02 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Tell me what's wrong.  
(Delivered at 3:02 PM)

 **redlioness** : LANCE  
(Sent at 3:02 PM)

 **redlioness** : IS  
(Sent at 3:02 PM)

 **redlioness** : H  
(Sent at 3:02 PM)

 **redlioness** : O  
(Sent at 3:02 PM)

 **redlioness** : T  
(Sent at 3:02 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : ...  
(Delivered at  3:03 PM)

 **redlioness** : DONT YOU GIVE ME YOUR FUCKING SASS  
(Sent at 3:03 PM)

  **redlioness** : HE IS GORGEOUS  
(Sent at 3:03 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Keith...  
(Delivered at 3:03 PM)

 **redlioness** : JUST WAIT UNTIL YOU SEE HIM   
(Sent at 3:03 PM)

 **redlioness** : THEN YOULL UNDERSTAND  
(Sent at 3:03 PM)

 **redlioness** : FUCK YOU  
(Sent at 3:03 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Pidge warned me about this.  
(Delivered at 3:03 PM)

 **redlioness** : excuse me  
(Sent at 3:04 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : But it seems I wasn't fully prepared  
(Delivered at 3:04 PM)

 **redlioness** : FUCKING  
(Sent at 3:04 PM)

 **redlioness** : EXCUSE ME  
(Sent at 3:04 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Keith, please.  
(Delivered at 3:04 PM)

 **redlioness** : pidge is actually going to die  
(Sent at 3:04 PM)

 **redlioness** : that fucking rat  
(Sent at 3:04 PM) 

 **redlioness:** i will skin them alive  
(Sent at 3:04 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Please, just try to get along with Lance for now.  
(Delivered at 3:04 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : And go easy on Pidge.   
(Delivered at 3:04 PM)

 **Actual_Adul** t: We don't need any injuries right now, and besides.  
(Delivered at 3:04 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Lance may be turned off by the killing of a little kid.  
(Delivered at 3:04 PM)

 **redlioness** : honestly, Shiro  
(Sent at 3:04 PM)

 **redlioness** : you can eat my entire ass  
(Sent at 3:04 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : Love you too, Keith  
(Delivered at 3:04 PM)

 **Actual_Adult** : I'll see you when you get home.  
(Delivered at 3:04 PM)

 

Keith shoved his phone back into his jean pocket, staring daggers at the gremlin on the other side of the room. They took no notice in his sudden aggression, their attention instead turned to the laptop that sat on their legs. He wanted to comfort them, to yell at them, because  _what the actual fuc_ _k_ _,_ you don't just  _tell_ people about this kind of thing so instantly! This wasn't high school, they weren't supposed to be gossiping about him behind his back! 

Okay, well, maybe it _did_ come in handy sometimes. Like when they went through Matt's notebook that he used to work on new spotlights and mechanics and find out about his little crush on Shiro way back when. And maybe also how they'd spied on a few dates of theirs and let him know about the unbelievably awkward tensions there were. And _perhaps_  also how stupidly shy Shiro was on said dates.  _Okay,_ so maybe their little snooping tendencies came in handy sometimes. He couldn't count the hours he spent teasing Shiro with the material they supplied him. But this was  _different_ , okay? This was  _him_ now. 

Before he was able to pout about Pidge's _fucking_  gossip circle with his brother, he was snapped back into reality with Lance's voice from behind. 

"You alright?" 

Hot embarrassment flooded his cheeks as Keith stared back up at the tan boy. _Fuck_ , was his sulking that obvious? The  _last_ thing he needed right now was for this gorgeous boy to learn about his stupid little crush because he was too busy being upset with Pidge and let his affections slip out. 

"I-" Keith huffed, throwing himself to his feet to come more face-to-face with Lance. He couldn't help but notice the good inch or two the other boy had on him, just one more thing to be bitter about. "I'm _fine_. What do you need?" It ended up being more of a demand than a question, an unnecessarily harsh tone accompanying the words. He didn't actually mean for his words to be so sharp, but Lance was cute and Keith was flustered and he didn't know what to do and everything activated his defensive reaction up to overdrive. He was about to say something, to apologize, but Lance's expression suddenly soured and he planted his hands on his hips, challenging the smaller boy's aggression with his own dry sarcasm.

"Well, aren't you just a little ray of sunshine," he scowled. "I have to work with you, remember? The _only_ reason I'm here?"

Keith didn't appreciate Lance's quick whiplash (even if it may have been deserved). It wasn't _his_ fault that he was a little defensive! If he didn't like it, then maybe Lance should've thought about the consequences of being so attractive before he came waltzing into his life. 

"Whatever," he mumbled, another flush finding it's way onto his cheeks. He, admittedly, probably should have known that, seeing as it was literally the single reason Lance was even there. But he'd already all sense of self-respect thanks to Pidge, so, really, what was a little more humiliation added on to that pile?

"Try to control your enthusiasm," Lance bit back. "Let's just go." He reached out and grasped the smaller boy's arm, pulling him forward with a jerk. It was _possibly_ a little rougher than it needed to be, but he didn't try to stop his smile when he spotted the red glow that managed to keep invading the pale boy's cheeks. Keith flinched at the sudden movement, nearly colliding with the chest of his captor. Lance didn't waste any time, pivoted on his heel and dragging the singer along with him to the door before being pulled to a stop.

"Want to tell me where exactly you're carrying me?" Keith growled, his free hand prying at the larger one locked onto his arm.

"My dance studio," Lance barked back, turning to face the older boy. "And I'm _taking_ you, not  _carrying_." Within moments, Keith could practically see something click in Lance's mind and watched in mild horror as a devilish grin spread over his lips and his eyes flickering something mischevious. All of a sudden, Keith didn't feel quite safe on the ground where he stood. Lance stepped a foot closer to the smaller boy, his Cheshire smirk only growing. "Unless, of course, that's what you're  _asking_ for..."

Keith's eyes widened and before he could do anything, Lance's hands were already gripping his waist. 

"Wait, Lance-"

Without second hesitation, Keith was hoisted into the air by the Cuban dancer with a yelp, both hands clinging to tan arms with a death grip. His cry was enough to draw laughter from Lance, and he certainly couldn't miss the cackles of the Holt siblings from the opposite side of the room. He was able to spot Pidge with their phone out as they giggled, giving their distressed friend a wave and grin. Keith made a mental note to kill Pidge even more brutally than before. 

" _Lance_ , put me _down_!" Keith hissed as threateningly as he could, fingernails still digging into Lance's skin desperately and legs curled underneath of him helplessly. However, it proved to be somewhat difficult to be intimidating when he was being held by someone he barely knew like he weighed nothing and when the entire room was left to laugh at his misery. 

Rather than being placed back down on solid ground, Keith was instead thrown over the shoulder of his still giggling captor with another cry and chorus of laughter. 

" _Lance_!" He screeched, pounding his fist on his back.

"I thought you wanted to be carried?" Lance asked innocently. 

"I never said _anything_ about-" Keith was cut off, Lance bouncing on his toes and once again emitting a whine from the boy on his shoulder. He ignored it, pushing open the doors and beginning his trek to the dance studio, getting an earful from Keith the entire way. 

" _Lance_ ," Keith whimpered, fingernails no longer digging into tan skin and instead twisted his fists into the other boy's jacket. "Put me  _down._ "

Lance almost felt bad for the singer and how desperate he sounded, even considering setting him back down on his feet. Almost. Not quite, though. He instead ignored the fussing and entered an elevator, sending them to the bottom floor. He could hear the distressed whine from his companion almost as soon as they exited the doors,

"Lance, _please_ ," Keith let out a distressed whine, holding his face in his hands as they passed crowds of other workers. " _People are staring._ "

"I can see why," he hummed. " _Eres un chico muy hermoso_ , sabes."

"I-  What?"

"Do you know how to speak Spanish?" Lance asked abruptly, sending a smile and wave to a cluster of kids he recognized from a few of his classes. 

"No?"

"Hm," Lance purred. "Good to know."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Keith huffed, attempting to prop himself up against the Cuban boy's back.

"Nothing," Lance chirped, closing the dance studios glass door behind them and sitting Keith back to the ground. He walked over to a few speakers he had set up when he'd first gotten a job there and plugged his phone in, scrolling through a few songs. "Let's see what we're working with."

Keith nearly cried when he connected with solid ground again. He sat cross-legged on the floor for a few moments, watching Lance as he worked with the speakers and his phone before the familiar base of the god-forsaken song began to blast through the room. Lance let it play, hopping up and sitting on a speaker, concentrating down at his feet while he listened. Keith could see him mouthing the words along with the music in nearly perfect timing, _did he already know this song_? Who would willingly submit their ears to this noise? 

"Arianna! Nice," Lance clapped once the song had finished. "I didn't take you as a pop kind of guy, honestly."

"I can assure you that I'm _not_ ," Keith corrected. "But we don't get much of a say in what we preform and not."

"Can't you say no?"

"Well, I _guess_ ," Keith mumbled, clasping his hands around his legs. "But it's not really that simple. We've got to keep a reputation, y'know? We can't really just deny someone what they want." He fell silent for a second, then continued. "Plus, this is for a super wealthy and powerful family and we really don't want to disapoint them."

"Understandable," Lance nodded, pushing himself off of the equiptment and stepped up to Keith, extending a hand out to him. The boy on the floor hesitated, not entirely sure if he was to trust the help being offered, but was grabbed and pulled to his feet independantly before he could make any sort of decision. "So why don't we get started, then?"

 

 

 

 **2 New Messages** from **lilgreengremlin**  to **Actual_Adult**

 Wednesday 3:56 PM

 **lilgreengremlin** : [ _disaster_ __gay.jpg_ ]  
(Sent at 3:56 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : lookit our sweet baby   
(Sent at 3:56 PM)

 **Actual_Adult:** Please tell me that's not my dear brother.  
(Delivered at 4:03 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : the one and only  
(Sent at 4:03 PM)

 **Actual_Adult:**  Jesus Christ.  
(Delivered at 4:03 PM)

 **Actual_Adult:**  That poor boy.  
(Delivered at 4:03 PM

 **lilgreengremlin** : they really do grow up too fast  
(Sent at 4:03 PM)

 **Actual_Adult:**  Is that Lance who's holding him?  
(Delivered at 4:03 PM

 **lilgreengremlin** : you know it  
(Sent at 4:03 PM)

 **Actual_Adult:**  Ah.  
(Delivered at 4:03 PM

 **Actual_Adult:**  Please make sure he's okay.  
(Delivered at 4:03)

 **lilgreengremlin** : ill do what i can  
(Sent at 4:03 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : no promises tho  
(Sent at 4:03 PM)

 **Actual_Adult:**  Pidge.  
(Delivered at 4:03)

 **lilgreengremlin** : ???  
(Sent at 4:03 PM)

 **Actual_Adult:**  You know what.  
(Delivered at 4:03)

 **lilgreengremlin** : UGh  
(Sent at 4:04 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : f i n e  
(Sent at 4:04 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : ill babysit your disaster of a brother for you  
(Sent at 4:04 PM)

 **lilgreengremlin** : but youll be buying my lunch tomorrow  
(Sent at 4:04 PM)


	5. Dragged Into This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance learns a little more about Keith, and Keith gets to play a little bit of dress-up with his new "friend". (Songs with titles and artists in notes!)

Lance figured he should probably take the time to do a bit of research on his new dance partner. The day’s previous lesson had proven to be… _difficult_ , to say the least, and he decided that maybe seeing what Keith was used to doing might help them start something new. Keith had turned cold and as stubborn as an ass for the entire time they’d been together, hardly ever meeting his eyes or being generally helpful in any way. He refused to dance at all, which, if you asked him, was unbelievably _stupid_ to Lance, because that was the _only reason he was even there_. But, whatever, they couldn’t change anything now.

The Latino settled onto his bed, pulling a laptop from the table beside him and flicking it open. Opening a fresh tab, he hesitated. What exactly was he looking for? Wikipedia articles? Facebook pages? Other performances? Yeah, that... that sounded about right, he went with that.

 _“Keith Kogane Paladins performance"_.

The first links to pop up sent him to YouTube with some song he didn’t recognize the name to. He _did_ , however, recognize Kesha's name as one of his personal favorite artists, so he figured it couldn’t be too bad and halfheartedly tapped the link to the video. Lance’s found his mind wandering back to Keith and how he claimed that he was  _not_ a "pop guy". But... Kesha  _sung_  pop, didn't she? So what was this?

All thoughts fled with the strumming of an electric guitar shooting through the speaker of his laptop, Pidge and Keith already on the screen. Wait, wasn't  _Keith_ the singer? Why was Pidge there? Christ, he didn't realize how little he actually knew about this band before agreeing to help. He wouldn't have even known their  _names_ if it hadn't been for Allura, who knows what  _else_ he was oblivious to? Keith didn't have a guitar in his hands and Pidge wasn't at their drums set, both factors challenging Lance's knowledge of the group. They instead both held microphones in their hands, circling around each other as the music played. He could make out who he assumed to be Shiro as merely a smudge of colors in the background with numerous other people that he didn't know. All the new information was drowning Lance's brain and he couldn't seem to focus, but everything cleared as soon as Keith opened his mouth.

" _Your eyes follow like a spotlight, two eyes like the sun,"_ The words poured out of the speakers as fast as they did Keith's mouth, and Lance found himself stunned. " _Go ahead, keep your distance from me, soon you're gonna come._ " Lance watched as the boy on screen gestured and circled around a motionless Pidge, who then pulled the microphone up to their lips. 

" _When you flick your hair like you don't care and you ask me where I'm from,_ " He watched as the smaller person rock their head rashly as they sung, flipping their tuft of creamy brunette hair with every nod, sinking down slowly with the words.

" _That game that you're runnin', baby, you've already won._ "

" _I need to know, know, know,"_ The two singers stepped toward each other in rhythm, latching their hands over the other's arm once close enough. " _What d'ya need, need, need? What d'ya like, like, like?_ " 

The music slammed to a halt and Keith suddenly pulled Pidge forward by their arm and swung them across his chest and into a dip, faces pushed dangerously close. " _'Cause I'm gonna be it tonight._ "

As the music pounded back, the two intwined performers blasted off of each other to opposite sides of the stage as Keith continued to belt into the mic. " _You could be cool, you could be shy, say what you want, say what you like!_ " He pointed a finger to the smaller person, pivoting towards them and using his free hand to comb his raven hair away from near purple eyes. Wait, _purple eyes_? Since when were his eyes  _purple_? Was that even possible? He wasn't exactly a scientist, but he also didn't remember his freshmen year biology teacher saying anything about _purple eyes._ And, more importantly, how had Lance not noticed that his eyes were purple? _Fuck_ , they were... really pretty, actually. He'd never seen purple eyes before, and they looked especially nice against Keith's pale skin and darker hair. And how they gleamed with the spotlight shining directly into the violet orbs, it felt somewhat hypnotizing, like he was in a trance as he stared into them...

"S- _Shit_ , wait- what?" 

Lance suddenly snapped out of his daze, nothing less than bewildered staring at the frozen screen in front of him. Had he really subconsciously paused the video to stare at this boy's eyes? He wouldn't deny that Keith was pretty, because he certainly was, but it seemed that he didn't realize just  _how_ pretty he was. And, shit, he was  _really_ pretty. He used the stopped images to inspect the pale boy's complexion further, gaze turning elsewhere from the gorgeous amethyst eyes. His skin seemed extra pale in the washed-out glow of the spotlight, making the puff of dark hair even more prominent over his forehead. He was obviously already sweaty from the performance, matting and sticking hair to his face, something that Lance determined to be much more attractive than it should have been. Lance's eyes wandered back to the frozen purple ones, and he could recognize a fiery passion buried deep within them. There was such intensity there that it almost scared him, and Lance decided that maybe it was time to switch to another performance. He left the video paused and scrolled the page down to the next in line. He found another, one with Pidge in the choreography again. They both wore different outfits from the previous video, now switched to skin-tight body suits that made Lance feel all kinds of emotions that he recognized all too quickly. _Fuck_ , that wasn't good for his mind. The suits left almost nothing to the imagination, and he could feel the heat rise on his cheeks as he hid his face in his hands. 

"God _damn_ it," he mumbled, peaking through his fingers as he clicked onto the link. 

The actual noise coming through the speakers startled Lance momentarily. He was _certain_ , though, that Keith's body suit and his possibly less-than-focused mind had  _nothing_ to do with the fact that he forgot what was going on,  _thank you_ , and that it was a silly idea to even  _propose_ such a thing. No, he was just tired. Yeah, tired, that was it. Exhausted.

Pushing all thoughts behind him, Lance focused on a familiar throbbing beat from the background. Wait, he knew this song! Which was... strange, thinking back once again to when Keith insisted that he "didn't sing pop".  _Right._ Which is why he'd found two different performances of pop songs within the first five minutes of searching. 

" _I got a dirty mind, I've got filthy ways, I'm tryna' bathe my ape in your milky way,"_ Pidge started their section, swaying and moving with the words. Lance wasn't able to see Keith on stage, but a pillar of fog and muffled lights was the center of his attention. A silhouetted figure rose with the smoke from a drop-out on the floor, and he soon realized that the figure _was_ Keith. Although somewhat distracting, the rising was slow enough that it didn't interfere with Pidge's part. " _I'm a legend, I'm irreverent, I be reverend, I'll be so far uh-uh-uh-uh-up, we don't give a fuh-uh-oh._ " 

For as perplexing as Keith may have been, Lance truly did have to give it to the duo. They were  _really_ good at singing. Sure, he may have only heard barely one song so far, but their vocal range was impressive. He'd heard before that Pidge had been solidified as the rapper of the pair, which he took to mean that they were just gifted at memorizing and shouting words really fast, but if this song was anything to go by, that was far from the only thing they could do. They were able to skip their voice so smoothly that he wasn't completely convinced that it was natural, and they were able to get their vocals to a surprisingly high pitch, compared to their regular voice. Their voice had a dynamic flexibility to it that was unlike anything he'd heard before. Lance was a dancer, not a singer, but he still knew it took a _lot_ of work to train a voice to rise and dip like they did.

" _Welcome to the danger zone, step into the fantasy, you are not invited to the other side of sanity. They callin' me an alien, a big-headed astronaut- maybe it's because your boy, Yeezy, gets ass a lot,_ " The young singer pushed to a halt directly in front of the now completely-risen figure, a spotlight suddenly snapping on, melting away the silhouette. And there he was, the gorgeous boy himself in that damned bodysuit. Keith sprang to life, previously standing motionless as he rose, and stepped forward, putting his arms over Pidge's shoulders. 

" _You're so hypnotizing,_ " he started, voice pulsing slightly with the beat, withdrawing his arms from around the smaller singer's shoulders and pushing them around their head, pulling their hair back. " _Could you be the devil?_ " He threw his arms out, letting them fall slowly, imitating wings. " _Could you be an angel_ _?_ " Keith spun around to the side of Pidge, one hand grasping a smaller one and the other wandering smoothly over their body. " _Your touch, magnetizing. Feels like I am floating, leaves my body glowing._ "

He stepped around them, landing on the other side of their body. " _They say, 'Be afraid,' you're not like the others, futuristic lovers. Different DNA, they don't understand you..._ " 

Keith began to circle Pidge, eyes never leaving them with the beat change. 

" _You're from a whole 'nother world, a different dimension. You open my eyes, and I'm ready to go, lead me into the light!_ "

Lance nopped his head alongside the sudden rise in tempo, familiar lyrics already playing in his head. Those words quickly fell, however, as he watched the screen. 

" _Kiss me, k-k-kiss me! Infest me with your loving, fill me with your poison!"_

Keith had fallen to his knees, body throbbing on the stage floor to the pounding bass, hands clutching and pulling at his partner. A flush exploded over Lance's face and his breath hitched, eyes glued on the scene in front of him. He didn't care  _how_ well he might have known this song,  _nothing_ could've prepared him for  _this_. He wasn't done, though, oh no, not yet.

" _Take me, t-t-take me! Wanna be your victim, ready for abduction!"_

The boy threw his torso and arms back, leaving his chest and neck exposed in front of Pidge, who simply stared at him, still swaying with the music. He pushed back to his hands and knees, sliding across the front of Pidge and spinning into a kneel, pulling himself up and against the younger performer's body, holding their face in his hands.

" _Boy, you're an alien! Your touch, so foreign. It's supernatural, extraterrestrial._ " His mouth pressed only centimeters away from Pidge's neck, and Lance concluded that it was prime time for a different performance. He clicked on the top one instantly, needing to be anywhere besides where he was then. The lyrics and the low lights and the dancing and the  _damn bodysuit_ was too much for poor Lance's mind to compute, and he was going to short-circuit if he experienced too much more of it. He didn't get a chance to see what he actually chose, but it didn't matter at that point. He just needed something,  _anything_ else. 

That may have been a mistake.

Lance had tried to soothe himself while the advertisement played, running a hand through his hair. He did everything he could to think about anything except for what he just saw, but it was all that could come to mind. Keith was the center of his thoughts, of course, but the image of him pressed so close to Pidge seemed to be burned in his brain alongside it. Thinking of which, the two seemed to get awful close to one another in the first performance too. They were just performing, right? It probably wasn't anything other than that. They were just partners in singing, and they had to dance together on stage. He knew that was how things worked, he  _was_ a dancer, after all, and he had to dance with other people all the time. It was only logical, really. But, of course, he really didn't know _anything_ about Keith up until the past two days, and even now he still didn't actually know all that much. And in all honesty, would it really be that unreasonable for the two to be in a relationship? They seemed like they'd known each other for quite a long time, from what he'd picked up on, and sometimes people fall in love and feelings are things that just happen and there's nothing anybody can do to prevent it and Lance shouldn't have even thought that and-

What the _hell_ was Keith wearing _?_ Was that a _ballet outfit_? _What the fuck?_

Before Lance was able to gather his thoughts any further, Keith had already begun to sing, walking and twisting gently over the stage.

" _You seem to replace your brain with your heart. You take things so hard, and then you fall apart. You try to explain, but before you can start, those cry baby tears come out of the dark._ "

He began to climb the stairs connected to a pillar in center stage, and Lance noticed what appeared to be an oversized, flat water faucet of the back wall of the stage. 

" _Someone's turnin' the handle to that faucet in your eyes, they're pouring out where everyone can see. Your heart's too big for your body, that's why it won't fit inside. They're pouring out where everyone to see._ " Keith stopped at the top of the platform, hands gripped to a wheel-shaped handle and twisting it, a cascade of water beginning to pour from the faucet on the wall. 

" _They call you 'Crybaby,' 'Crybaby,' but you don't fucking care. 'Crybaby,' 'Crybaby,' So you laugh through the tears._ "

Lance was proud to say that he was at least able to sit through the entire song this time, mesmerized the entire time by the long satin skirt wrapped around his waist and flowering out when he twirled and jumped. It seemed like he was notably skilled in ballet, which was nothing short of unbelievable, to say the least. But what  _really_ got him was how the older boy looked in his outfit. Lance would've _never_ taken Keith as the drag type, but looking at the other videos in the roster told him all he needed to know. Was this just a performance thing, or did he wear stuff like that normally? He didn't know nearly enough about anyone in the group to determine anything himself, and he didn't even  _have_ any of their numbers, so he couldn't ask them directly, except-

 _Hunk_. He knew Hunk. Hunk worked with them, he would know this sort of stuff, right?

Unlocking his phone, Lance clicked into the facetime app, letting Hunk's contact ring for a few seconds. Moments later, a tanned, smiling face appeared on screen, greeting Lance with a wave.

"Hey, Lance!" Hunk chirped.

"Hunk! My friend, my buddy, my bestest bro," Lance smiled, propping his phone next to the laptop. "Am I ever glad to see your gorgeous face."

"Ah, Lance," he rolled his eyes, but Lance could see the contempt in his features. "You make me blush. What do you need me to do?"

"Wha-- Why, I never-!" Lance sputtered in mock hurt.  "Can't a guy just call his best friend without being questioned?"

"Sure they can," he hummed, "But I've known you too long to not recognize a pattern, and opening with a compliment is a sure sign of needing something."

"What?" Lance mumbled. "A pattern? What patterns do I have?"

"Well, let's see," he sighed, running a hand over his forehead. "When you're pretending to work, you always act way to serious with whatever you're doing. When you're  _actually_ working, you'll talk to yourself quietly. And when you're thinking about someone, you'll just... stare at them. Unblinking. It's a little freaky, honestly. "

"What?"

"And when you don't get enough of your 'beauty sleep,' you'll get _incredibly_ petty. It's almost impressive, in a way." Hunk continued, ignoring his friend's question. "And when you're around a pretty girl, you'll flirt with them a whole lot."

Lance snorted, raising an eyebrow. "Real keen observation, there, Hunk. I was expecting a little more from you, if I'm being honest."

"That's not the interesting part, Lance," Hunk smiled, crossing his arms. "The interesting half is that when you're around somebody that you actually  _like_ , you'll be less direct. Try to talk to them more, get to know them. Plain flirting seems like a defense mechanism or something, to protect yourself from a commitment by being rejected flat-out, and when you really care, you'll be more careful with what you say."

"What do you mean?"

"Remember Nyma?" Hunk asked gently. He knew that she was still a sensitive subject with Lance, and he tried not to bring it up too much. "Once you really fell for her, there wasn't much flirting, just a lot of conversations. A lot of questions. You wanted to know everything about her, you wanted her life story. You wanted a life with her, and thought the only way to get that was to know her life already"

"Don't remind me," Lance growled.

"Sorry." A thick silence filled the microphones before Hunk smiled once again. "But, y'know, you  _did_ seem to be particularly interested with Keith earlier..."

" _Okay_ ," Lance snapped, a little louder than was completely necessary. "Let's just move along!"

"No, no, I mean-  I haven't seen you pick somebody up in a while, huh? Keith must be pretty special for  _that_ kind of treatment, eh?"

"I have a question!" Lance demanded, doing his best to ignore the flush over his cheeks. " _Remember?_ _"_

"Right, right. What did you need?" Hunk laughed.

Lance sighed, pushing a hand through his hair.  _He was never going to hear the end of this._

"I, uh-" he sighed, trying to find a way to avoid the obvious. "I was doing a little research on The Paladins, and I found this performance with Keith-"

"Oh, Keith again? I thought you just said that-"

"I know! I know, just shut _up_ " he hissed through clenched teeth. "You didn't let me finish."

"Fine, then go ahead," Hunk dared, an all-too-knowing smirk painted over his lips. Damn him and his stupid patterns, he could see _right_ through Lance. His smile only grew at the silence that followed, resting his chin on the back of his propped-up hand. "That good, huh?"

"Just  _listen_ , okay? I really don't need your sass right now, Hunk."

" _Alright_ , alright, I'm done," he laughed quietly. "Talk to me. I want to hear all about your pining adventures."

"I'll just be ignoring that," Lance muttered. He inhaled, running a hand down his face before facing his friend again. "I was researching The Paladins because I figured that, y'know, I should maybe know  _something_ about the people I'll be working with for the next month and a half."

"Which is fair," Hunk nodded.

"And I wanted to see some performances they had done before to see what type of dance Keith knew and could perform, so I found some videos, and I- he... h-he.." Lance's voice trailed off, and after a groan in frustration, he grabbed his phone and pointed the camera to the laptop screen. "Just.. look for yourself!"

Hunk took a moment to process the image and smiled. "What? The skirt?"

"The sk- I-  _Yes_ , Hunk! The skirt!" Lance sputtered, "What else could I  _possibly_ be talking about?" 

Hunk laughed aloud, tilting his head back slightly. "Yeah, he does that a lot."

" _And?"_

"And what?"

" _You can't just_ \- I'm gonna need just a  _little_ more information than that, Hunk!" Lance boomed. 

"There isn't that much to know, honestly," the larger boy shrugged, face softening. "He wears dresses and costumes and this kind of stuff for a lot of his performances. Especially for Martinez, he always wears ballet stuff for her."

"Who?"

"Melony Martinez. She's one of his more requested artists to perform- this song is actually by her! Every time he performs her songs, there's always the ballet themes. It's kind of become a little easter egg for people to look for at performances. This is one of the more tame ones, actually, I've seen him go full Swan Lake before."

" _Excuse me?_ "

"We might still have the outfit at the studio, actually! I'm pretty sure they keep all the costumes after. You can probably ask Coran about them and he'll-" 

Hunk was cut off by a shrill beeping coming from a room that Lance wasn't able to see from his screen, and watched as his friend's eyebrows shot up behind his bangs and his eyes went wide, immediately standing up in reaction.

"The cake!"

And just like that, he was gone from Lance's sight. The Cuban blinked, taking a moment for his brain to catch up with his eyes. He paused for a beat, waiting to see if his friend would return to the screen. When he didn't, Lance's eyes skimmed over his computer screen. The next videos in his queue were similar to those he had previously viewed, and he could spot multiple other videos in which Keith adorned a dress. While those videos were certainly of interest to Lance, what _really_ caught his eye was one thumbnail in particular. It was unlike the others- much calmer, much less "pop star" and more "school talent show". Keith sat alone on a stool with an acoustic guitar in his hands, secured around his body with a strap. The lighting wasn't nearly as stark as the screaming stage lights, now replaced with a single, softer spotlight. Even Keith's features seemed more delicate, and the fire Lance had recognized in his eyes earlier completely drained. He hesitantly clicked the link and was greeted with what seemed like a phone-filmed recording from the seats. 

It started on Keith, who was plucking and tuning the strings of his guitar. It then panned over to the right to show Pidge with Matt, Sam, Hunk, Allura, and Coran sitting in the seats that followed. While everyone certainly looked happy, Pidge seemed particularly thrilled, legs crossed in their chair as they bounced slightly in their seat with a hand over their smile. Lance made a mental note in the back of his head that the rest of the theatre was completely empty. The camera swirled back to Keith, who had finished his preparations and was sending over a gentle smile.

" _Ready?"_

Lance couldn't hear any verbal confirmation, but Keith started playing anyway, so he just assumed something had happened out of frame. Pidge seemed to be able to pick up on the tune almost instantly, an audible gasp able to be heard. The phone swung back over to the younger performer, who had stood up from their seat and had what Lance saw as aggression painted on their face.  _"No! No, fuck you, Keith!"_  

A ring of laughter chimed between the makeshift audience, including Lance himself. If it wasn't for the obvious smile that Pidge was attempting (and failing) to hide, he would've thought that they were honestly livid with the older boy. It seemed like everyone else came to this realization too, and the camera filmer reached a hand out to pat Pidge gently on the shoulder. 

 _"Is something wrong?"_ They asked innocently, a voice Lance couldn't quite recognize.

Pidge whipped around to face the camera person, the same aggressive-joy from before still present in their features.  _"Fuck off, Shiro! You know exactly what's wrong!"_

Lance could see Matt in the background, previously doubled over from laughter, pull at the end of their sweatshirt and drag them back into their seat, where he wrapped his arms around them in an embrace, still giggling profusely. Pidge made a pathetic attempt to resist their brother's hug before submitting to his cling, and they curled up in their seat once again, hiding their face in their hands as the others continued their mild banter. The chatter only fell still once Keith actually began to sing, his eyes trained down to the instrument in his hands. 

 _"You said they make fun of your body,"_  he started, voice raw and completely unaltered. _"Humiliation in your eyes when you told me."_

Oh. 

_Oh._

Oh _no_. 

 _"Well I'm gonna find them, don't you worry,"_  Keith looked up from the guitar, sending a lopsided grin (that absolutely did _not_ make Lance's heart flutter) over to Pidge. _"I'll make sure they're really fucking sorry."_ He could hear Pidge giggle at the extra emphasis Keith pinned to the end of the line.

_"You said you're embarrassed of your body, you told me you think you're really ugly. Well, my love, I know you don't see what I see."_

_Fuck,_ he had though Keith's voice was nice in the other songs? This was  _beautiful_. The way it was so untouched by any aftereffects or autotune and left it so natural made the song sound almost hypnotic, and Lance couldn't help but be sucked into the trance.

 _"Anything that is beautiful, people want to break, and you are beautiful, I'm afraid."_  The camera switched back to Pidge again, who had curled into themselves even further, now peaking through their fingers.  _"Anything that is beautiful, people want to break, and you are beautiful, I'm afraid."_

Hunk had come back into the frame at one point.

"Lance! Gosh, I'm sorry about that, I had to make sure the cake didn't burn, and I wanted to send Shay a picture because it  _was_ made of her durians, and she had wanted to see what I was making with them. And then Shay wanted to talk to me, and I  _can't_ say no to her, she's honestly the sweetest thing, and I got a little carried away until I realized that  _you_ were still on the line, so I had to say goodbye to her so I could come back here. Yeah, sorry about that." Hunk sent Lance a guilty smile and a small round of nervous laughter with the apology, which, by the looks of things, wasn't needed in the slightest. Lance didn't even seem to register that he had said _anything_. He realized that his friend's attention was turned elsewhere, but he couldn't tell what exactly was holding his gaze.

"Whatcha looking at?"

The words flew over right Lance's head completely, eyes still fixated on the video in front of him.

_"You said you're ashamed of your body, you'd rather die than show me."_

"Lance?"

_"But I would love you in any form you'd take."_

"Are Keith and Pidge dating?" Lance finally barked out, looking over at his phone screen to look Hunk in the eyes. Hunk was a little startled with his companion's sudden return to consciousness, taking a moment before answering.

"What?" He asked. "No." Hunk paused for a moment, lips fading back into a smile. "No, they're not dating," he chuckled quietly. "God, no. Pidge is asexual-aromantic, and even if they weren't, Keith is _way_ too gay to date them. Nothing against Pidge, though, they're honestly the cutest little sweetheart when you get to know them, despite what they may tell you." He paused again, face falling slightly. "Don't tell them I said that."

Lance fell silent again, glancing between Hunk and the video. 

"Huh."

"Why?"

The Cuban paused, eyes shifting once again.

"It's... nothing."

His focus shifted back to the video, he'd missed a small chunk of the current verse talking to Hunk. 

 _"Well, my love, I hope you trust me,"_  The camera swerved to show Pidge, now standing up, hand over their mouth. Lance could see the twinkle of tears in their eyes as they walked toward the stairs of the stage, making their way up as Keith just finished his song. _"When_ _I say you have a perfect body."_  

Pidge had made their way all the way up the stage and next to Keith, pressing a palm against their eyes and wiping away the moisture. _"You asshole,"_ they cried weakly. Keith swung his guitar onto his back and opened his arms to his smaller companion, who gladly took the chance, nearly throwing themselves into his embrace.  He could hear the coos and words of admiration from the others in the audience, and he could see Keith's gentle smile just over Pidge's cloud of light brown hair. 

"So... what're you looking at?" Hunk repeated, now able to catch his friend's attention.

"Oh! Uh," Lance shook his head, picking his phone up. "I'll send you the link," he mumbled.

A familiar 'ping' rang from Hunk's phone as he received Lance's message, and his facetime screen went blank as he looked at it.

"Oh, this! Ohhh, I forgot about this," Hunk chirped, a nostalgic heaviness to his voice. 

"What is it?" Lance asked.

"It was Pidge's birthday a few weeks ago," Hunk said, staring down lovingly at the screen. "Keith decided that he was going to perform a little private concert for Pidge and the others at Altean for his present to them, 'cause they're always trying to one-up each other with the better birthday presents every year. He did a few of their favorite songs, which was pretty funny, and this was his finale."

He paused, expression growing bittersweet. "They were going through a really hard spike of dysmorphia at the time. They'd freak out a lot and get these really bad panic attacks for the week leading up to their birthday. They'd mentioned a few times how much they liked to listen to that song when they were upset, so Keith decided he would sing it for them personally."

Lance could feel his heart melt. "That's... _really_ sweet of him."

"Yeah," he smiled, "He's also a big softy once he warms up to you, no matter what he says. Getting those walls down can cause a little trouble, though." 

"Hm."

A silence fell to their voices, the only noise coming through the video that Hunk locked his eyes on.

"Hey, Hunk?" Lance asked softly.

"Mmm?"

"He's really pretty."

  **\-- -- --**

 

Keith wasn't too surprised to be the last person to arrive at the studio. It wasn't unusual for the coffee buyer of the week to be the final person at work, especially now that their group to buy for had been growing recently. He passed Shiro on his way up, getting some half-baked explanation as to what he was doing where Shiro was going too fast to really make sense, so Keith just nodded and handed him his cup and continued on his trek to his studio. Into the elevator and past the vocal lessons that were always way too loud, and he finally stood in front of the glass doors to his favorite studio in the building. Using an elbow to push the door open while protecting the drink trays in his hands proved more difficult than he would've liked, but he ignored it, pushing himself inside.  **  
**

It was still new to see Lance among the group, the unmistakable glow of tan skin standing out next to Pidge. He decided to avoid that situation, for now, not wanting to be chewed out by Lance for "being too stubborn" and "refusing to cooperate" with him the previous day. He instead took a sharp turn to the left, finding Hunk typing something into his phone. The smaller boy set the trays down with a huff, taking Hunk's cup out and sliding it over the counter to him. The cup caught his attention, looking up to see the visibly exhausted boy across from him. 

"Good morning, Keith," he smiled. "Sleep well?"

"Not exactly," he sighed, raking a hand through his hair, pushing his bangs out of his eyes. "Was up all night talking Pidge." He looked over to the said gremlin, who only looked to be in slightly better condition. Their body was probably used to lack of sleep more than his, and he despised them for it. Pidge noticed Keith's gaze from across the room, sending back over a knowing smirk and wave. Lance, previously talking to them, noticed and looked over his shoulder, making eye contact with the older boy. He held his gaze for a few seconds before his face twisted into excitement. 

"Keith!" The Cuban boy called from across the room, pausing the conversation he had previously been having with Pidge. Keith groaned, burying his face in his arms on the counter. He didn't even need to see Pidge's  _stupid_ face too know that they had the same  _stupid_ smile that they always wore when they  _knew_ he was in trouble. "Keith, hey!" Lance called again, voice much closer than before. He raised his head and turned to look at Lance, catching Pidge's shit-eating grin that they made no effort to hide from the corner of their eye. He sighed again, looking back to Lance with a forced smile. Before he could greet him, though, Lance cut him off.

"You didn't  _tell_ me you wore drag!"

Before Keith even got a chance to register the entire sentence, Pidge was already screeching with laughter from across the room. At least Hunk was polite enough to try and hide his giggles. Despite his attempts, though, it did nothing to help the roaring blush that flared onto his face. 

"I-- W- _What?!_ " He stuttered. He stepped back, only managing to pin his back against the counter. 

"I saw some of your videos! When did you start wearing drag?" Lance continued enthusiastically, grabbing Keith by his hands. The other boy flinched at the sudden contact, but Lance held a firm grip on his palms, only pulling them closer.

"I, uh-" Keith bit down on his lip, trying once again to fruitlessly pull back his hands. He looked away, eyes landing on Pidge with pleading eyes. Their smile only grew as they strolled over to the pair, standing next to Lance. 

"Yeah, Keith, when  _did_ you start dressing in drag?" 

Pleading turned to anger in an instant, and Keith could practically  _feel_ the joy radiating off of the smaller of the gremlin. 

"Will you show us?" Lance asked eagerly, squeezing the pale boy's hands in his own.

"What? No! I'm not-- We don't even _have_ the-"

"Actually, we _do_ have the outfits," Pidge cut in. "In fact, we just got Shiro to go find them for us to see!"

" _What?_ " Keith stared at them in disbelief. This was all moving so  _fast_ , goddanm it. One moment he was just trying to have a nice conversation with Hunk, and the next thing he knew, Lance and Pidge were making Shiro go find the stupid outfits he'd worn from older performances and was  _apparently_ about to be wearing again. 

And, like a _fucking_ script, there he was. Shiro pushed the door open, pulling a mobile clothing rack full of _far_ too many outfits covered in a protective sheet that hid them from view. Allura, Matt, Sam, and Coran trailed behind him, each holding their own covered garment. Keith stared at the spectacle in utter disbelief as the others chittered eagerly about god knows what, showing each other the outfits they held. He marched over to his step-brother, already fuming, and hissed, "What is _this?_ "

Shiro smiled down at his baby brother, putting a hand on his ruffled black hair. "Lance wanted to see some of the old outfits you've worn from some previous concerts," he explained simply.

"And you agreed?" Keith snapped back, smacking gesturing to the clothing rack beside them. 

"From what I've heard? You two  _desperately_ need some bonding time," Shiro raised an eyebrow. "And, besides, it's been a while since you've worn any of these outfits, and you always did look so pretty in them."

Keith's cheeks burned even hotter than before.  _Okay,_ so now  _Shiro_ was in on this too. Was  _anyone_ still on his side? 

"You did look cute," Hunk added quietly, a guilty smile on his face. 

Apparently not.

"I-  I am  _not_ cute!" he sputtered, whipping around to face the larger boy, fists now clenched at his side. 

"Oh, stop whining, you big baby," Pidge scolded, pinching his cheek. "Do this one first, it's one of my favorites." They shoved a covered hanger into his hands, letting his face go and pushing him towards the connected bathroom to the room.

"Don't I get a say in this?" he hissed back, eyeing at the plastic covering in his arms. Their favorite? That  _couldn't_ be good. If he knew anything about Pidge, it was that they found tremendous joy out of his suffering, and he had an itching suspicion that this time wouldn't be any different.

"Nope!" They sang, delivering one final shove into the small room and slamming the door behind him. Keith cried a yell of protest, pounding the door with a fist before sighing.  _Fine_ , whatever, this was  _fine_ , it wasn't like people hadn't seen him in this stuff before. He'd practiced in each outfit countless times before, and if his team wasn't desensitized to them by now, then he didn't know what to say. _Lance_ , however, wasn't  _on_ his team.

But that didn't matter!

Nope, no way, no siree, it certainly did  _not_ matter to him, not at all. Why? Because he didn't care what Lance thought about him, that's why. Why would he care? It wasn't like Lance mattered to him or anything. It wasn't like he wanted to impress him or anything.  _Psh_ , impress him? Why would he ever want to do  _that_? Certainly not because he was incredibly handsome and gorgeous and beautiful in every way. Certainly not because his smile was brighter than any stage light that he was forced to stare at for hours at a time. And  _certainly_ not because he had any kind of crush on him. And he  _didn't_ have a crush on him, alright? Definitely not. So it clearly wasn't the reason for anything. Lance? Mattering? To _him_? Ha, absolutely _not_. What a stupid thought. Completely ridiculous. Simply _preposterous_.

Mind focusing back on the sheet of plastic in hand, Keith hesitantly reached for the zipper. He  _knew_ that he wasn't going to like what Pidge had picked, he  _knew_ it was going to be so  _stupid_ and  _humiliating_ and wanted nothing more than to just go home and sleep and not have to deal with this shit so early in the morning. Finally, he unzipped the plastic wrapping, letting it fall to the floor as he stared at the monstrosity in his hands.

He remembered this outfit.

He  _hated_ this outfit.

God, of  _course_ Pidge wanted him to wear this. A golden corset with too many almost-real gemstones to possibly count and a pair of high-top, tight, black shorts with golden buttons lining the sides. That would've been bad enough for him, but _lo and behold_ , the worst was still yet to come. Folded together with a makeshift strap, a cluster of white feathers dropped into his hands. Undoing the strap, the delicate feathers fell into place in a peacock-like tailpiece. He knew the harness hanging down was supposed to wrap around his waist, completing the carnival dancer look. He knew that the team had all adored this outfit when he'd worn it, but he would've been just as contempt burning it to ashes. It made doing  _anything_ incredibly tedious and difficult, and if that wasn't reason enough to despise its existence, then the fact that it was one of the most embarrassing pieces he'd ever worn would do it. And they wanted him to wear it. Again. Because he needed more " _bonding time_ " with Lance, whatever that meant.

This was going to be a long day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha, "updates every Friday". R i g h t.
> 
> In all honesty, I'm incredibly sorry for taking so long to update this piece. Been having a real hard depression spike recently and motivation has been way low, and it's been hard to do much of anything, let alone update a fic. I have not abandoned this, though! It is still going! Just. slowly.  
> I very much appreciate anyone who's stuck to waiting for this chapter, I know it's been far too long. I can't promise that the next chapter will be too soon, but I can promise that it will come at some point.
> 
> The songs from this chapter:  
> 1st Song - Body Talks (feat. Kesha) - The Struts  
> 2nd Song - E.T. (feat. Kanye West) - Katy Perry  
> 3rd Song - Crybaby - Melony Martinez  
> 4th Song - Ugly - Nicole Dollanganger
> 
> writing music lyrics into sentences is hard
> 
> All Kudos, Comments, Etc. are very much appreciated! Thank you for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Updates every Friday! 
> 
> Kudos, comments, and everything else is incredibly appreciated!!


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